I’m.Dying. Right now. “You think it’s respectful to eavesdrop?”
“No, but everybody my age does it. It’s how we learn stuff. That’s how Regis heard what his mom said about mine.”
“Well, man to man, I’m not surprised to hear that. Les… Ms. Trent Sumner and your mom didn’t get along in school.And that’s putting it lightly. “So, you gotta understand that whatever she says about your mom comes from a place of deep jealousy and doesn’t mean shi…squat.”
“It’s okay, you can say shit, Shane. I can handle it.”
Shane’s abs were getting a workout just from fighting his laughter. He bit down hard on his lower lip to keep it from coming out. He really was trying to match Kevin’s seriousness.
“Regis said he heard her talking to her friends at their book club?—”
You mean wino club.
“—and she was talking pretty loud?—”
Called it.
“—and she was saying my mom was always trash, as long as she’s known her. My whole family is trash.”
Shane practically growled, “Don’t you dare believe that bull…shit. Because that’s all it is. A big, stinking pile of bullshit pouring out of Leslie Trent’s mouth.”
Kevin snickered. “Gross.”
“And I can tell you, it’s been coming out of her mouth as long as I’ve known her, so how about that?”
“Yuck!” Kevin laughed.
“So don’t let Regis get to you. He’s not worth it.”
Kevin’s laughter dried up. “I don’t. I’m used to him sayingbullshitlike that. It’s what he said after that made me punch him. Because it scared me.”
Suddenly, Shane didn’t feel like laughing, either. “I’m listening.” He turned off the main highway into Lyons onto a dirtroad that snaked up and around and would give Kevin more time to talk.
“Regis’ mom said that after high school, my mom disappeared for years and nobody knew what she was doing, so she was probably a criminal who went to jail. All they know is that she came back pregnant. With me. And that my dad is probably in jail or dead, if she even knows who he is.” Kevin’s voice wobbled.
Shane’s heart broke for the little boy spilling his story. At least he could clear some of that up. The rest… he had no idea. And apparently, Kevin didn’t, either.
“Oh, man. Kevin, your mom never went to jail, okay? She’s not, nor has she ever been, a criminal. So, don’t let that scare you.”
But Kevin was already waving Shane off. “I know that. Mom would never break the law. She’s different from my great aunt and uncle. But they don’t break the law anymore, either. They went legit. But that’s not what scared me.”
“So, what scared you?”
“Regis said, ‘Your mom’s so bad, somebody tried to kill her at Riversong. They tried to shoot her to death.”
Shane relaxed. He could handle this part. But he wondered why Kevin’s family hadn’t talked to him about it. It seemed out of character.
“Buddy, what happened was awful, and it put your mom in danger, but it could have been a lot worse. No one was killed. And I know for a fact that no one was trying to kill your mom. Unfortunately, they were after Rochelle. But, we caught the bad guys. Your mom is safe. Everyone’s safe.” He hesitated, then asked, “Didn’t they talk to you about it?”
“Yeah, they did. I know they weren’t after Mom now.”
“So why are you scared, buddy? The bad guys aren’t coming back.”
“Regis said she got lucky that time. But the next time, someone would kill her, and he and his mom would laugh and the whole town would be happy that my mom was dead because we’re all trash, and that’s when I punched him.”
That evil little shit.
“I shouldn’t say this, but if some guy had said that about my mom, I’d have punched him, too.”
